4 injured in drive-by capturing close to Chicago highschool

Four youngsters have been injured, one critically, in a drive-by capturing Wednesday afternoon close to a highschool on Chicago’s Northwest Side, police stated.

The capturing occurred at about 2:45 p.m. exterior an ice cream store throughout the road from Carl Schurz High School. Deputy Chief Roberto Nieves stated police imagine a darkish SUV pulled as much as a gaggle of individuals and somebody inside opened hearth earlier than the automobile sped off.

A 15-year-old boy was shot within the face and the neck and was reported in essential situation, he stated. A second 15-year-old boy was shot within the again and was in good situation, whereas a 17-year-old boy was in good situation and was being handled for a graze wound to his leg and an 18-year-old man was shot within the leg and was additionally in good situation.

Nieves stated no arrests have been made and detectives haven’t but decided a motive for the capturing of the 4 teenagers that he described as highschool college students. He didn’t know if any or the entire teenagers attended Carl Schurz High School. He stated detectives are analyzing footage from surveillance cameras within the hopes of figuring out suspects.

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Chicago Public Schools issued an announcement saying a capturing occurred simply earlier than a highschool’s dismissal bell however wouldn’t affirm the varsity identify. Later, Nieves stated he believed some college students had been dismissed earlier than the capturing as a result of the varsity releases college students for the day on a staggered schedule.

The college went on a lockdown whereas police responded. That lockdown was later lifted and college students have been launched, the assertion stated.

“Due to privacy concerns and student confidentiality, the District typically does not confirm the identity or school affiliation of any victims,” the assertion stated.

The new college yr began Monday in Chicago.

Nieves stated the police division would beef up patrols close to the varsity Thursday morning and afternoon.

Mily Garcia, a father or mother who was ready exterior the varsity to select up her daughter, advised the Chicago Sun-Times that she noticed somebody in a passing SUV open hearth at a gaggle of individuals exterior La Michoacana ice cream store. She stated the varsity had been locked down and she or he was nonetheless ready for her daughter to be launched from college at 3:30 pm.

The incident comes amid widespread gun violence in a metropolis that has lately seen extra homicides than any metropolis within the United States. While the town has seen a discount within the variety of homicides and capturing incidents in comparison with the identical interval final yr, the totals stay excessive. According to the police division’s statistics, the town has seen 425 homicides as of Aug. 22, down from 519 for a similar interval final yr. Also, there have been 1,828 capturing incidents, in comparison with 2,239 throughout the identical interval in 2021.

The space of the varsity within the metropolis’s Old Irving Park neighborhood has seen gun violence earlier than, together with in 2019 when a 17-year-old boy in his automotive was shot close to the varsity.

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